PHL Test 4

Term
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what is the definition of morality
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Terms in this set (48)
what is the definition of morality
the ultimate standards of conduct that apply to everyone
what is the definition of ethics
an individual's (or society's) interpretation of morality
what is moral realism
the view that morality exists, there are objective facts about right and wrong
what is moral anti-realism
the view that morality does not exist, there are no moral facts there are only moral opinions
list 2 reasons why many moral realists think they are moral anti-realists
there are exceptions to every moral rule (killing is wrong but there are times when it is okay such as self-defense) - moral realism is intolerant to other cultures (only moral anti-realism is respectful to other cultures)
what does Iris Murdoch's theory of moral particularism say
the view that moral truths defy easy categories, they depend on the particulars of each situation - we cannot give general rules about when it is right/wrong to do something
what 4 reasons does Mary Midgley give for rejecting the view that everyone is entitled to their own ethics
if it's wrong for us to judge others, it is wrong for others to judge us -- if all criticisms are invalid, then all praises are invalid too -- if we can't judge others, we can't judge ourselves -- if we can't judge others, then we can't judge them for committing mass atrocities
define retaliation
the act of harming someone because they harmed you
why is retaliation different from punishment
retaliation makes no judgement about whether the act is right, wrong, or morally neutral -- punishment makes a judgement about right and wrong
why is Nietzsche's book, The Genealogy of Morality, subtitled "A Polemic"
Polemic is an aggressive verbal attack on an idea -- he was attacking Christian morality
what, according to Nietzsche, is the origin of the words 'good' and 'bad'good meant strong and bad meant weakwhat is the slave revolt in moralitythe weak got together and changed the morality which rewards weakness (good) and punishes strength (evil) - turned bad into good and good into evildoes Ayn Rand embrace ethical egoism, psychological egoism, or bothethical egoism - the view that people ought only to pursue their own self-interestwhat are the 4 psychological consequences of accepting the ethics of altruism, according to Ayn Rand1. lack of self-esteem (we are consistently knocking ourselves down to help others) 2. lack of respect for others (we see others as victims) 3. a nightmare view of existence (we see the world as one tragedy after another) 4. an indifference to ethicsdefine retributionharming someone because they deserve to be harmeddefine the 2 simpler concepts included within the concept of retributiondesert: the condition of deserving something proportionality: the punishment should fit the crimewhat is divine command theorymorality comes from religion, right and wrong come from God's commandswhy does this claim (without God, all is permitted) assume divine command theoryif there is no God, there is no moralitywhen, according to divine command theory, is it right to murder peopleif God tells you to murder, you murder -- whatever he says is right -- going against what he says is wrongwhat are the 2 horns in the Euthyphro Dilemmagod commands things because they are right or things are right because god commands themwhat are the problems with each of the hornsfirst horn - things are right/wrong independently of God commanding and forbidding them second horn - we deny that god has reasons to command/forbid thingswhat are the 2 formulations of the golden rule1. do unto others as you would have them do unto you 2. do not do unto others as you would not have them do unto youwhat did St. Thomas Aquinas think that the golden rule shows about the origins of moralitymorality is not based on religion but on human rationalityhow is the golden rule different from the principles of reciprocity and retributionreciprocity and retribution are reactive: if someone is kind to you be kind back the golden rule is proactive: treat others as you would like them to treat youwhat is Kant's moral theory called and what does this word meandeontology - the science of dutywhat ability, according to Kant, is morality based onrationality - the ability to evaluate reasons, to judge some reasons as good and other reasons as bad - based on our ability to reflect on our reasons for actingwhat is the Formula of the Universal Law of Nature"act only on that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that is should become a universal law" think about what you want to do - imagine that everyone is always doing that thing - would it still make sense for you to do itwhat is the formula of humanity"act as to treat humanity, whether in thing own person or in that of any other, in every case as an end, never as means only" it is acceptable to use people when you are taking their interests into account but if you are not, it is wrong - respect is necessarywhat is the Trolley ProblemA thought experiment about a difficult ethical choice regarding a potential traffic accidenthow does Kant's formula solve the Trolley Problemit is morally wrong to intentionally kill innocent peoplewhy did Jeremy Benson name his prison the panopticonevery (pan) prisoner could be observed (option) at all timeswhat is rehabilitationthe process of restoring goodness through punishmentwhat are virtue ethicstheories of ethics that focus less on actions and more on characterwhat does Elizabeth Anscombe argue in her essay 'Modern Moral Philosophy'all modern attempts to provide a secular basis for morality have failed - we should stop using deontic terms (we have to do this, we are forbidden to do this) and start talking in aretaic terms (terms relating to virtue and vice)what are 2 core insights of Christian virtue ethicsseven deadly sins and seven heavenly virtues morality is based on habitswhat is the conclusion of Mengzi's thought experiment of the child by the wellpeople are naturally goodwhat are Mengzi's 4 sproutsbenevolence, righteousness, wisdom, proprietyhow does Xunzi reinterpret Mengzi's theory of natureif people require a good upbringing and encouragement to become virtuous, then there's a sense in which people are naturally evilwhat is Aristotle's Function Argumentevery moral virtue is a mean, or intermediate, between two vices of excess and deficiencywhat is incapacitationthe act of taking away a person's means of doing wrongwhat is deterrencepunishing someone to send a message to everyone else - the propensity of a punishment to discourage others from committing similar wrongs in the futurewhat is the difference between an intrinsic good and an instrument goodintrinsic good - we value it for its own sake instrumentally good - we value it for what is leads to down the roadwhat is an example of something that is intrinsically bad but instrumentally gooda painful surgerywhat is Mill's proof of utilitarianismto find out what you should do in any given situation, you have to add up all the happiness and suffering that will result from your various options, and then choose the option that had the best overall outcome - everyone desires happiness, happiness is intrinsically good and suffering is intrinsically badin what 2 ways is Mill's view controversialMills defines happiness as the experience of pleasure and the absence of pain (people say happiness is more than just pleasure and there is more to suffering than just pain) Mills assumes that happiness is the only thing that is intrinsically good (people say that there is more to life than just happiness)what is Hedonismhappiness is the only thing that is intrinsically good and pain is the only thing that is intrinsically badhow, according to Mills, can we determine which pleasures are better than othersask someone who experiences both of them - they will tell you that the higher ones are better than the lower oneswhat is Harriette Taylor Mill's argument against patriarchsexism is bad for men, bad for women, and bad for society